Five Audiobooks From Debut Authors To Add to Your Queue

There’s nothing quite as special as an author’s debut. If you’re looking for fresh finds to add to your audiobook hit list, we’ve rounded up a collection of picks from first-time authors. From a laugh-out-loud workplace romcom to a thriller made for the social media age, there’s plenty to entice you to keep listening.

I Hope This Finds You Well 

By Natalie Sue

Narrated by Nasim Pedrad

Jolene, an admin worker, accidentally gains access to her colleagues’ private emails and decides to use the intel to save her job. But as she’s drawn further into their private worlds and realizes each is keeping secrets, her carefully constructed walls begin to crumble—especially around HR staffer Cliff, whom she definitely cannot have feelings for. This office comedy gives a fresh and tender look at loneliness and love beyond our screens.

Martyr!

By Kaveh Akbar

Narrated by Arian Moayed

Kaveh Akbar’s debut—already shortlisted for the National Book Award—tells the story of Cyrus Shams, a newly sober, orphaned son of Iranian immigrants. Guided by the voices of artists, poets, and kings, Cyrus embarks on a remarkable search for a family secret. This leads him to a terminally ill painter living out her final days in the Brooklyn Museum. Martyr! explores how we spend our lives seeking meaning—in faith, in art, in ourselves, and in others.

Saints of Storm and Sorrow

By Gabriella Buba

Narrated by Danice Cabanela, Dante Basco

This Filipino-inspired fantasy introduces readers to Maria Lunurin, a bisexual nun who has been living a double life. To the world, she is Sister Maria. Behind closed doors, she is a stormcaller, the chosen daughter of a goddess. Maria does what she can to protect her people and the small family she has created in the convent, until one day she makes a devastating discovery.

We Alive, Beloved: Poems

By Frederick Joseph

Narrated by Frederick Joseph

Bestselling author Frederick Joseph explores a new genre in this poetry collection that seeks to find joy in moments of difficulty—whether by illuminating the beauty of being Black, highlighting the hope that can be found in childhood, or sharing intimate truths revealed on a mental health journey. Each poem seeks to immortalize the fleeting moments of joy, love, resilience, and inspiration that often slip through the grasp of our fast-paced lives. 

Such a Bad Influence

By Olivia Muenter

Narrated by Krystal Hammond, Amanda Stribling, Deanna Anthony, Jesse Vilinsky, Kelli Tager, Joe Hempel, Charlotte Moore-Lambert, Mark Sanderlin, Yinka Ladeinde, Amara Jasper

Evie Davis is a mega-popular lifestyle influencer with a million-dollar career at a tender age. But to Hazel, @evelyn is just Evie, her beloved little sister and a kid who has been exploited her entire childhood. So when Evie disappears in the middle of a live stream, Hazel knows something is terribly wrong. Internet fame, the allure of parasocial relationships, and some of our deepest cultural obsessions collide in this electric thriller.

For more debut authors, head to our Be the First to Discover Them playlist on platform.